Category: Domestic Policies

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Immigration Reform Politics Republican United States White House

Haley Barbour – For Immigration Reform Before He Was Against It

In today’s political climate, any Republican in favor of providing a pathway to citizenship for those here illegally would face the wrath of the GOP and the Teaparty. So a potential 2012 Presidential Republican candidate would have every right to hide that fact.

Enter Haley Barbour – the Republican Mississippi governor who was interviewed on Fox News and spoke about his ambitions for 2012. Questions were asked about Barbour’s history as a lobbyist, and in his effort to defend his position, Barbour seemed to forget one very important client he had when lobbying – The Embassy of Mexico.

Time reports;

Barbour may be eager to showcase his record, but one of Barbour’s foreign lobbying clients could cause him some troubles in the 2012 Republican primary, if he decides to run. According to a Justice Department filing by Barbour’s former lobbying firm, The Embassy of Mexico decided to retain Barbour’s services on August 15, 2001, to work on, among other things, legislation that would provide a path to citizenship for foreigners living illegally in the United States—what opponents of immigration reform call “amnesty.”

“Haley Barbour and I will lead the BG&R team,” wrote Lanny Griffith, Barbour’s former business partner, in the filing. According to subsequent filings, Barbour’s work included “building support in the legislative branch for passage of a bill related to Section 245(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.” As part of that work, Barbour’s firm arranged meetings and briefings with “Senators, members of Congress and their staff, as well as Executive Branch Officials in the White House, National Security Council, State Department, and Immigration & Naturalization Service.” Barbour’s firm charged Mexico $35,000 a month, plus expenses.

Could it be that Haley Barbour was once for amnesty? What would the Teaparty say if they found out about his amnesty providing past?

Mr. Barhour says he will wait until April to announce whether or not he will run for president in 2012. Until then, there are a lot of questions to be answered but chances are he’s not gonna be asked these type of questions over at the Republican branding FOX network.

Read the full Time report here.

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Domestic Policies Indiana New York United States

Auto Bailout Worked – General Motors Shares its Profits with Employees

Most would consider this good news, but those wishing for America’s destruction simply for political gains will not be happy over this. General Motors, the company that received $50 billion from tax payers in the form of a “bail-out,” has recovered to the point where they are now giving checks in the amount of $4,000 or more, to 45,000 hourly American workers through profit sharing.

The New York Times reports;

The checks will be worth “upwards of $4,000,” a G.M. spokeswoman, Sherrie Childers-Arb, said. That is more than double the company’s previous record of $1,775, paid in 2000.

About 3,000 G.M. workers at four plants in New York, Michigan and Indiana that were formerly part of the Delphi Corporation will receive about $3,000 each.

In all, G.M. will give at least $189 million of its profit back to plant workers.

If Republicans had their way, General Motors would have been a faint memory, causing hundreds of thousand to loose their jobs. Since receiving the bailout, GM has recovered, restructured its product and the company’s goals. Between January and September of 2010 GM saw profits of $4.2 billion.

Read the New York Time’s report here.

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Domestic Policies Republican United States washington

Sacrificing America’s Future Is The Republican Way

The Republican Party would like Americans to believe they are all for deficit reduction. Of course, their position on the deficit and spending can easily be refuted by the free pass they gave the Bush Administration, who conducted business in Washington like they were playing with monopoly money. That said, the Teaparty was hatched to keep Obama  in check, and the November midterm election saw much of their members elected to Congress.

They rode into Washington claiming to have a mandate from the Teaparty the –reduction of America’s  deficit–and in keeping with this mandate, Republican leaders in the house  began making the usual promises . One of those promises was a reduction of $100 billion, a feat easier said than done, and one that can only be accomplished through drastically slashing services that benefit many Americans. The Teaparty demanded these spending cuts, and the House Republicans are determined to please.

So what’s a Republicans to do?

Paul Krugman – a nobel price winner for Economics – wrote an article in then New York Times in which he explains the plight the Republican leaders face. As Krugman explains, Republicans will “sacrifice the future.”

Focus the cuts on programs whose benefits aren’t immediate; basically, eat America’s seed corn. There will be a huge price to pay, eventually — but for now, you can keep the base happy.

If you didn’t understand that logic, you might be puzzled by many items in the House G.O.P. proposal. Why cut a billion dollars from a highly successful program that provides supplemental nutrition to pregnant mothers, infants, and young children? Why cut $648 million from nuclear nonproliferation activities? (One terrorist nuke, assembled from stray ex-Soviet fissile material, can ruin your whole day.) Why cut $578 million from the I.R.S. enforcement budget? (Letting tax cheats run wild doesn’t exactly serve the cause of deficit reduction.)

Once you understand the imperatives Republicans face, however, it all makes sense. By slashing future-oriented programs, they can deliver the instant spending cuts Tea Partiers demand, without imposing too much immediate pain on voters. And as for the future costs — a population damaged by childhood malnutrition, an increased chance of terrorist attacks, a revenue system undermined by widespread tax evasion — well, tomorrow is another day.

Sacrificing America’s future just to win the next vote. But then again we are talking about the Republican party, and with them, it has always been party before country, regardless of what John McCain’s 2008 presidential slogan was!

Read Paul Krugman’s Article here.

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Domestic Policies Republican United States USA PATRIOT Act

Democrats Win On Partiot Act Extension

Dennis Kucinich, member of the U.S. House of R...
Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)

They call themselves “small government advocates,” yet, when the chance came to prove their idea of small government, John Boehner and the majority of Republicans voted to extend various parts of the Patriot Act set to expire at the end of February, with little debate on the House floor.

This first vote needed a two-thirds majority to limit debate, but failed with a final vote of 277 – 148, gaining 23 votes from the Teaparty who voted with Democrats to defeat the automatic extension.

The PATRIOT Act, officially called The USA PATRIOT ACT, acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 – was signed into law by George Bush about a month after September 11th, 2001. The law allowed the United States Government and other law enforcement authorities the ability to legally check the telephone records, emails, medical, financial, and other records of United States citizens under the guise of “fighting terrorism.”

The controversial parts of the law that the “small government” Republicans wanted to continue included wire-tapping, the ability of the government to seize businesses or personal property and the tracking of non-US nationals suspected of being “lone-wolf” terrorists not tied to any extremist groups.

Being credited for convincing some in the Teaparty to vote against the extension is Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) who challenge them to stand up to their claims for a less invasive governemnt. In a statement, he said;

“The 112th Congress began with a historic reading of the U.S. Constitution. Will anyone subscribe to the First and Fourth Amendments tomorrow when the PATRIOT Act is up for a vote? I am hopeful that members of the Tea Party who came to Congress to defend the Constitution will join me in challenging the reauthorization.”

The measure now moves to the floor of the House of Representatives for debate. A simple majority is then needed to approve the extension.

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Domestic Policies Employment

A.D.P Reports Private Employment Increased In January

A recent report from Automatic Data Processing (ADP) shows the following improvements in the job market.

Private-sector employment  increased by 187,000 from December to January on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report released today. The estimated change of employment from November to December was revised down by 50,000 to 247,000 from the previously reported  increase of 297,000.
This month’s ADP National Employment Report suggests solid growth of private nonfarm payroll employment heading into the New Year.  The recent pattern of rising employment gains since the middle of last year appears to be intact, as the average gain over December and January (217,000) is well above the average gain over the prior six months (52,000).  Strength was evident within all major industries and across all size business tracked in the ADP Report.
According to the ADP Report, employment in the service-providing sector rose by 166,000 in January, marking twelve consecutive months of employment gains.  Employment in the goodsproducing sector rose 21,000, the third consecutive monthly gain.  Manufacturing employment rose 19,000, also the third consecutive monthly gain.
Employment among large businesses, defined as those with 500 or more workers, increased by 11,000 while employment among medium-size businesses, defined as those with between 50 and 499 workers, increased by 79,000. Employment among small- size businesses, defined as those with fewer than 50 workers, increased by 97,000.
In January, construction employment dropped 1,000.  The total decline in construction employment since its peak in January 2007 is 2,311,000. Employment in the financial services sector increased 3,000 in January.
Tomorrow, the official BLS report ( Bureau of Labor Statistics ) comes out, and although that report is expected to show an improvement in January’s job figures, the unemployment rate is expected to climb slightly to 9.5%
Read the full report here.
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Barack Obama Domestic Policies Politics Tax cut United States

Millionaires to President Obama – Raise Our Taxes Please!

It was just a matter of time before the rich in this country made their voices known, either in favor of the Bush tax for the wealthy, or in favor of ending them altogether. Well now, and not a moment too late, a group of these wealthy folks have come forward and doing just that. But contrary to what the Republicans might think, these millionaires are asking President Obama to tax them more.

Yes Pecan

The group, made up of more than 40 of America’s most prosperous entrepreneurs – including hedge fund legend Michael Steinhardt, super trial lawyer Guy Saperstein, and Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s – have formed a website in the hopes that others would join their efforts to restore financial responsibilities for all Americans, and not just the middle class.

In a letter to the President, the group states;

We are writing to urge you to stand firm against those who would put politics ahead of their country.

For the fiscal health of our nation and the well-being of our fellow citizens, we ask that you allow tax cuts on incomes over $1,000,000 to expire at the end of this year as scheduled.

We make this request as loyal citizens who now or in the past earned an income of $1,000,000 per year or more.

We have done very well over the last several years. Now, during our nation’s moment of need, we are eager to do our fair share. We don’t need more tax cuts, and we understand that cutting our taxes will increase the deficit and the debt burden carried by other taxpayers. The country needs to meet its financial obligations in a just and responsible way.

Continue reading “Millionaires to President Obama – Raise Our Taxes Please!”
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Democratic Party Domestic Policies Immigration National Anthem Republican United States voter suppression

In Your Face Hate – G,O.P tells Latinos “Don’t Vote!”- Video

The Land of the Free and The Home of the Brave.

These are the last few words of The Star-Spangled Banner, our National Anthem.  They represent the core of what America is – a nation where freedom reigns due to the ultimate sacrifice of the men and women who died to make this freedom possible.

Your Vote Counts

Don’t tell that to the makers of this ad, a group calling themselves, “Latinos For Reform.” This group is advising Latinos to bypass these elections and “Don’t Vote,” because, according to its website, “Democratic leaders had two years to push for comprehensive immigration. It turned out that their efforts were scant: all talk and no action.”

We checked out the website associated with this ad and found the following, “If, however, we don’t vote for these politicians, then we will command the attention and respect of both sides of the aisle.” The site claims that this is “the only way to make them stop taking us for granted.”

It’s quite frankly appalling to think that any group, especially one that claims to represent the voice of its members, would tell their members to keep their mouths shut!

The makers of this ad know one thing – that Republicans have been against Comprehensive Immigration Reform and have stood in the way of any real advancement on this issue for decades. The makers of the ad also know that since the Obama Administration, Immigration Reform and the Republicans opposing it have been a major topic in Washington over the last year.

From Republicans asking for the building of the “fence,” to their wanting to ship all illegal immigrants out of America back to their original country, to the “Anchor Babies,” these are all ways the Republicans are trying to suppress the Latino vote. Republicans know that thinking Latinos and other minorities will not cast a vote for a Republican, so advising Latinos to stay home will guarantee a no vote for Democrats.

Republicans are banking on suppressing Latinos, but Latinos are wiser than these Republicans are giving them credit for. Unlike what the author says on the Latinos for Reform website, staying home and keeping your mouth shut is not the way to make your voice heard. It is a way to help Republicans win.

In the land of the free, all legal voters must cast their votes. It’s the only way to make your voice heard.

[cincopa A4GA4RKv8mcp]

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Crime Domestic Policies Featured Republican Senate United States

G.O.P David Vitter Likes Prostitution, But Not Prosecution

Talk about a double-standard! GOP Senator from Louisana, David Vitter was caught in a prostitution ring back in 2007. The prostitute was arrested for her crimes, but Mr. Vitter, who carried the GOP’s banner of  “family values” high for all to see, has yet to answer any questions concerning his role in the sting.

GOP David Vitter

This story must make all the “johns” angry.

We’ve seen so many Dateline episodes where officers acting as prostitutes trap unsuspecting johns for solicitation, where just passing money to a prostitute is all that’s needed for an arrest. In Mr. Vitter’s case, a little more than money was passed.

On the video below, one of the prostitutes spoke of an encounter with The Family Values Guy, and details him coming to the hotel room, taking a shower and 15 minutes later…..well, we all know what happened in that time period.

Why is Vitter still skating below the radea? A crime was committed and one party to the crime was arrested. Last time I checked, prostitution involved at least two people. If the prostitute was arrested and later took her own life, Mr. Vitter should at least be expected to answer some questions on his extra-marital affairs.

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